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Yes, That’s Reba McEntire Playing KFC’s Colonel Sanders

Bobby Moore

The revolving door of comedians and television personalities playingCol. Harland Sanderslet in the first woman to play the role, and it’s country singer Reba McEntire.

The ninth Colonel since 2015, and the first musician and woman to tie Sanders’ iconic bow tie, debuts on Jan. 28. One day later, the Smoky Mountain BBQ special menu item McEntire promotes arrives at KFC locations nationwide.

In the commercial, McEntire sings a honky tonk song about the new product, complete with lyrics insisting that she’s not a famous woman in disguise. No joke.

It’s silly, of course, but that’s okay. It’s meant to be funny, with KFC basically telling potential customers to like their product because they don’t take themselves too seriously. Besides, McEntire is funnier than a lot of the comedians wearing the Colonel’s outfit already.

This bizarre marketing campaign has #ColonelSanders currently trending on Twitter. If Reba pretending to be an old guy from Kentucky distracts that many people from our current situation, then maybe it’s all a blessing in a literal disguise.